Sunday is the last day the British can pay their respects to Elizabeth II before Monday’s funeral. For the fourth day, the coffin with her mortal remains stands in Westminster Hall, where thousands of people queue 24/7 to greet the Queen, BNT envoys from London reported.
Queuing outside Westminster Hall it takes between 12 and 24 hours, depending on how many people lined up at that time. Now, according to the British authorities, if you are at the back, you will reach Westminster Hall in about 5 hours. But despite London’s unpredictable weather, tens of thousands of people are still making their way to the Westminster area at this hour.
The flow of people is so great that traffic even on the sidewalks must be regulated by the police. Thousands of law enforcement officers will make sure everything in London runs smoothly and without incident.
The Queen’s funeral on Monday is expected to be an unprecedented event not just for Britain and Europe, but for the world. 2,000 guests, 500 heads of state and government, as well as royalty. For the first time ever, so many high-ranking personalities will gather in one place, each of which requires in itself to be guarded with extreme care.
The American president is already in London Joe Biden and his wife Jillthe French president Emanuele Macronthe Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the leaders of the countries of the Commonwealth of Nations.
Britain did not send invitations to Russia, Belarus, Syria, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Venezuela. Russian President Vladimir Putin was not specifically invited due to the invasion of Ukraine. Instead, an invitation was sent to North Korea, albeit at the ambassadorial level.
Friends and relatives of the Queen, high-ranking guests and 4,000 other soldiers – these are only a small fraction of the people who will attend Elizabeth II’s funeral. Unparalleled in its complexity in organizing and ensuring the safety of people: over a million people from Britain and the world are expected to come to London to take part in this historic moment.
For safety reasons, many of the subway stations where dangerous crowding can occur have been closed. Airspace over London will be closed at certain times tomorrow. Also here today important meetings are planned between the new British Prime Minister Liz Truss and some of the heads of state who are in the country.
Joe Biden has arrived in London
US President Joe Biden will also be in London for the Queen’s funeral, France Press reported.
He is accompanied by his wife Jill Biden. The US president’s plane landed last night at Stansted airport north of the British capital, a photojournalist from the agency discovered.
This afternoon (20:00 Bulgarian time) Joe and Jill Biden will bow in front of Elizabeth II’s coffin, which is on display in Westminster Hall. It is unclear whether the flow of people who will come to greet the late British queen will then be cut off to ensure the safety of the US president. At the wakes of Elizabeth II’s children and grandchildren yesterday and today, mourners continued to walk past the coffin, AFP notes.
Tonight, the President of the United States will attend a reception at Buckingham Palace which will be given by the new British King Charles III to foreign leaders who have started arriving in London.
Tomorrow, Biden will be among 2,000 guests, including many heads of state, invited to attend the late British queen’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey. The ceremony will start at 13:00 Bulgarian time.
The “Vigil of the Princes” took place on Saturday and Sunday evening.
For Charles III the series of diplomatic events that accompanied the funeral began yesterday with a meeting with representatives of the 14 countries of the Commonwealth of Nations (former British Commonwealth), of which the British monarch is officially the head of state. Among them are Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Elizabeth II was very attached to this organization, but it is now shaken by the temptation of some countries, particularly the Caribbean, to become republics, AFP observes.
The so-called “Vigil of Princes” was also held that night, where all eight grandchildren of Elizabeth II were silent for 15 minutes next to her coffin. The interesting thing about the case was that, despite the fact that he had given up his role as an active member of the royal family, Prince Harry was granted permission to wear his military uniform. The same goes for the queen’s son, Prince Andrew, who, after a scandal, did not also fulfill his role as a member of the royal family for several years.
The decision to allow them to wear their military uniforms is believed to have been made by King Charles III, as an attempt at this difficult time for the family to keep scandal off the agenda. It was the first time that the vigil included the grandchildren of a deceased monarch.
The “Vigil of the Princes” was held for the first time for King George V in 1936. So far only male heirs have participated, but now Elizabeth II’s daughter, Princess Anne, has broken tradition and has stopped beside to her mother’s coffin to pay her respects.
Angry reactions after the invitation of the Saudi prince
Britain’s decision to invite Saudi Crown Prince and de facto head of the kingdom, Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral sparked a wave of angry reactions from human rights activists. reported the BBC.
A declassified CIA report concluded that Bin Salman gave the green light to the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the country’s consulate in Istanbul in 2018. The influential Saudi Crown Prince has denied involvement, but has since been in somehow ousted from the West and was uninvited to Britain. So far, he watches the BBC.
Sources close to the Saudi embassy in London have confirmed that the crown prince will arrive in the British capital over the weekend, but it is unclear whether he will attend the ceremony tomorrow.
Hatice Cengiz, the girlfriend of the murdered Saudi journalist, said the invitation to Bin Salman was a stain on Queen Elizabeth II’s memory. She has called for the Saudi crown prince to be arrested when he lands in London, but she has admitted that she doubted it would happen.
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